


Not My Problem

by SleepIsForTheBrave



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Mental Health Issues, Romance, Swearing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-23
Updated: 2017-08-27
Packaged: 2018-12-18 22:16:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,694
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11883957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SleepIsForTheBrave/pseuds/SleepIsForTheBrave
Summary: You have just moved into the peaceful town of Stardew Valley to start a new life as a farmer. Things are going well for you; your neighbors love you, your farm is getting along quite nicely, and you feel happy. There's just one small problem though...Shane. Will he accept your friendship, or reject your efforts?





	1. Chapter 1

“Well, here I am,” you thought to yourself, gazing out at the endless fields of corn. Sometimes things got spicy out there with the occasional farm house or soybean field. You swore that somewhere off in the distance there was a banjo playing a mad country tune. Well, in the end, you had to thank Grandpa for saving you from that miserable life in the city and the mind-numbing office job at Joja Corp. After all, you were looking forward to a peaceful getaway in the country with a beautiful change in scenery; it had been too many long years since you had seen so much nature, and boy was there a heck of a lot of it out here.

_Stardew Valley, 0.5 miles_

A grin spread across your face. Time for a new beginning.

****************************

“Shane! The new farmer has just arrived in town! I want you on your best behavior…have you showered yet? And clean up your room, it’s a mess!”

“Aunt Marnie, you’re killing me here, I’m not the 10 year old in this house, Jas is,” Shane grumbled.

“Well, it’s easy to get confused when Jas is the more mature one of you two,” Marnie retorted, smacking him lightly with a towel. “At least introduce yourself to her, she is going to be our next door neighbor after all.”

“Wait, she’s living in that old ranch up north of us?” 

Marnie nodded. “Didn’t I tell you that already?”

“Ah shit. I gotta go,” Shane grumbled, sprinting out the back door.

“Shane, language! That boy…”

Of course she was going to live there. Obviously it was the only vacant space here in Stardew that looked somewhat decent to live on. Damn, but of course he had to be an idiot and use the cave next to that ranch as his secret “man cave…” and not clean up after himself. Goddammit. He hit himself on the head as he recalled that the beer can pile had grown to quite an impressive size. Why hadn’t he thought of that sooner? And why hadn’t he brought a bag for all those cans? So many questions, Shane really needed to reevaluate his life choices at this particular moment. 

Good, no signs of the farmer just yet. Maybe he could still hide his sins and not earn the reputation of “beer-guzzling hermit.” He ducked into the cave and found he had definitely underestimated the amount of cans. There was at least half a year’s worth of them in there, and some had started getting a bit rusty, and sinking into the muddy ground. Shane buried the ones that were already mostly consumed by the earth and gathered up the remaining cans in his arms. Time to make a run for it. With only one goal in mind, Shane ran like a crazy loon down south to his home. Little did he know that the new farmer and the mayor had full view of his little performance. 

The mayor groaned. “Sorry you had to see that… don’t you worry though, not everyone in this town is like that, I swear. I should probably save him the embarrassment and let him introduce himself in his own time."

You picked up a can, inspecting the label. “This beer any good, Mayor Lewis?” you asked.

The mayor laughed. “You’re going to make a great addition to this town, farmer.”

Meanwhile, Shane collapsed into his pile of beer cans as he reached the backyard of his aunt’s ranch. “Where the hell am I going to hide all these?” he thought aloud as he looked around for an answer. A huge burlap sack caught his eye, and without further hesitation, he stuffed the cans into the bag, making as little noise as he could. It wasn’t that Marnie didn’t know about his drinking habit, it was more that he didn’t want her to realize just how bad it was. He didn’t find it possible to explain it without first telling her about his emptiness, that the tranquil nature of this place was mocking his eternal loneliness, just as the continuous noise and repetitiveness of the city had done. There really was no escape, and he felt that he was nearing his breaking point. 

Taking the sack and swinging it over his shoulder, he quietly walked through Cindersap Forest until he reached the cliffs. Setting down his burden, he gave out a heavy sigh and threw the cans out over the cliff edge. He watched them clumsily sail on the wind and drop onto the ocean’s surface below.

“Those cans make it look so damn easy,” he muttered, looking down at them. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a stray unopened can laying in the grass. He picked it up. _EXP 03/2020._

“Wonderful.”

He cracked it open and guzzled down the bitter liquid, walking away from his deed.

_“Thanks a lot, farmer.”_


	2. Chapter 2

For a small town with only around 30 people, it sure was exhausting trying to find them all and introduce yourself. Oh well, there was only 3 more people on the list, and you were determined to find them before evening. You walked down to the beach, wondering if anyone happened to live there besides Willy, who you had found fishing by the bridge that led towards the beach. Crossing the bridge, you gasped at the gorgeous sight before you. A wild beach with gentle blue waves lapping at the shore line greeted you. In the middle of the shoreline, a person with golden flowing locks stood gazing out into the open sea. It was almost too perfect, like a scene from a sappy romance. His hair, his beautiful crimson overcoat and forest green corduroy pants…

You realized with slight embarrassment that during your wide-eyed wonder your legs had carried you right over to the majestic being. He noticed you and began to turn in your direction, waiting for your response.

“….Beautiful….” you whispered. “Oh crap I mean hello! Hi, I’m y/n and I’m the new farmer in town.” You spluttered out, hoping you didn’t sound like a loon.

"Y/n? What a lovely name. It’s a pleasure to meet you at last. I should’ve introduced myself first, it must’ve taken you a while to find me, what with me living in this old shack of mine on the beach.” He gestured toward the old log cabin that was sheltered by the trees of the forest on the edge of the beach. “I’m Elliott.”

“Pleasure to meet you, Elliott. Don’t worry about it, I’ve been hunting down people all day, and I have still have a few more people left to find. I’ve been in the mountains, the town, everywhere!"

Elliott chuckled. “My goodness, to think it was only a year ago that I was in your place. Try the forest, it’s just west of town. Marnie lives there with her nephew and niece, as well as Leah.”

“Thank you so much! I should get going then, I wanted to meet everyone before sunset. Nice meeting you!”

“You as well!”

You sprinted over to the forest, feeling a positive energy from your encounter with Elliott. You had already met Leah in town, as well as Jas, who you assumed had to be Marnie’s niece. Coming across a huge ranch complete with a cow and chicken farm, you casually walked inside, finding a middle-aged woman in a forest green dress, busily shuffling about the counter.

“Hi, I’m y/n the new farmer in town. I live right up north of you guys.”

“Oh hello dear! I’ve been expecting to see you, Mayor Lewis told me a new farmer was arriving in town. I’m Marnie. If you ever need help starting up your farm just let me know!”

“Thanks, I really appreciate it.”

Marnie looked up from her work. “Have you met my nephew yet? I hope he made a good impression on you, he can be a bit difficult at times.” She rolled her eyes, but a smile crossed her lips.

“Actually, I don’t think so, he’s the last one I need to introduce myself to. Do you know where I could find him?”

“I’m guessing he’s out on the dock in the lake. Either that or at the Stardrop Saloon.”

“Thanks! See you soon!”

“Take care dear!”

You rushed out to find the dock, passing by a suspicious looking pig in sunglasses pulling a cart. Inside the cart, a lady with shiny emerald green hair waved an arm in your direction. _….I’ll question that later._ Finally, you saw your last victim of today’s quest.

“ Hi, I’m y/n, the new farmer in to-“

“Leave me alone,” a gruff voice answered. He sat slouched at the end of the dock, bare feet dipped in the water, a beer clenched in his hand. His gaze was glued to the lake in front of him. From what you could see of his side profile, his black hair sat clumsily atop his head, the sides cleanly shaven. As for his face, it looked as though he hadn’t shaved in a good few weeks or so. Stubble dotted the lower half of his face. His puffy blue sweater was worn and torn from heavy use. Basically, he looked a mess. The beer in his hand didn’t help.

You stood there, shocked. “I just wanted to introduce myself….”

“Great, so you did, now go.”

You felt weak, but stood your ground. This was quite a twist, as most of the people you had met today had greeted you warmly, or at least had the decency to feign interest.

“At least tell me your name.” You managed to say, trying not to sound intimidated.

He sat up, and twisted his body to gaze in your direction. You expected anger to reflect back at you, but there was only cold, raw, sadness in his eyes.

“Shane.”

You gave him a smile and he gave you a confused look in return, turning his head back to the water and taking another long swig of beer.

“Thanks, Shane.” You walked back down the dock and disappeared into the forest without another word.

“You’re welcome? Weirdo…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well hello! I have moved back to college land so all the packing and settling in has been done and over with. I just wanted to add that this story does have some swearing and might have some violent/unpleasant moments, and I'll make sure to add that before the chapter if it is overwhelmingly present. I hope you're all having a wonderful day/night! See you soon!

**Author's Note:**

> Hello readers! I hope that was a decent first chapter, I haven't written fanfiction in such a long time. It's also probably not the best time to start a story as I am going off to college this weekend....oops. But don't fret! I plan to finish this story soon, as I have written a few chapters in advance before releasing it to the archive. Anyway, hope you enjoyed!


End file.
